SPIRITUAL PROSPERITY

It is well documented that many people fail to achieve their goals in life due to the phenomenon known as "fear of failure" but are you aware that a major factor that is often overlooked, is a state known as "fear of success"?

Fear of failure will lead many people into inertia - the inability to make decision or take action in case they receive rejection or negative outcomes. This mental state is fairky easy to identify and there are many tools in the personal development industry to help combat this plague and reprogram the mind for success. However, the fear of success is much more subtle, harder to spot and also harder to eradicate.

Perhaps you have this tendency in your life. Here are some indications of a fear of success mentality.

Studying and trying to implement self-improvement techniques and/or personal development tools but your life does not improve or may even get worse.

You settle for less than you feel you deserve or are capable of achieving.

You start new projects full of enthusiasm and optimism but wane in your efforts or stop short before you have completed them.

You expect things to go wrong no matter how well the situation appears to be at the moment.

Can you identify your own patterns in the any of the above statements?

The fear of success can also make you behave in ways that hold you back. Look at the list below. These are ethe symptoms of the fear of success.

Procrastination - putting off what needs to be done or not doing what you know will bring you closer to your desired result. Everyone suffers from this inner 'demon' at some point in their lives (although some of us suffer from it more than others!).

Procrastination is a 'success killer'! How can ou expect to reach your destinationm if you do not take steps towards it? Strive to do little things each day that will bring you small steps closer to your goal. This is why having a personal development plan is an essential ingredient in the fight against procrastination. Take action! Any action! Refine your steps as you go along but do not sit and do nothing. Taking action is one of the key aspects in personal development.

Can't see the forest for the trees! - this is almost the opposite of procrastination but has the same effect on your personal development. The aforementioned saying is well known but have you ever given it real consideration?

Don't get caught up in your plan believing that it is more important than the materialised goal! For many years I got caught in this trap. I started to think and act as though my plan was more important than my end result and thus missed many opportunities to alter my path and reach my goals more quickly! Let go of your ego and allow the Universe to show you a quicker route to your goal. Remain flexible.

Thinking that the time is not right - have you ever waited until the timing was perfect before starting a venture? Have you ever waited until you had more information on a better plan?

Again ACTION is the key to the door to success. Taking small steps forward are better than taking none or waiting to see if your foot is landing on the right spot! Even if your actions take you away from your goal you have at least gained insight and knowledge about what does not work!

Being a perfectionist - this is similar to the point above and has the same effect, namely, that you never really move forward. No matter how good a job is when its finished it can always be improved! I have heard many great musicians tell how they hate listening to their own songs because they can find a million things that need improved. Yet, we still enjoy them. I think a classic example of this is "Bridge Over Troubled Water" by Paul Simon. This song is hauntingly beautiful yet Mr. Simon does not think its good enough!

Seeing only problems - how do you use your focus? Do you constantly see only and alll the problems involved? If you are this way inclined it is pointless trying to change overnight! However, you can use this mindset to your advantage while you strive in your personal development to acquire an opportunistic frame of mind instead.

"How can you use seeing only problems to my advantage?" you say. "Easily", is my reply! Look at the problems and prepare a plan to deal with them. Everytime you overcome one congratulate yourself. Use them as a gauge for your achievements. If you keep seeing more problems remind yourself of how well you dealt with the others. Look at how far you have come! If you see a problem ask yourself, "how best can I overcome this challenge?" or "how quickly can I rectify this situation?". The quality of your questions are important as I have outlined in a previous article. Use the problems as fact finders. Is there a real problem now? If so then deal with it. Is it a potential problem? If so then create a contingency plan in case it does occur but don't get caught up in it just be prepared.

Enjoy the journey, follow the above guidelines and you will achieve success. Eventually your fear of success will dissipate and you will have moved a long way forward in your personal development.

Strategies for Success

What do successful people do that others don’t?

What motivates them to keep going?

Can anyone be successful?

What makes them different from others?


Attitude

Successful people are confident, honest and driven.

These are attitudes, not skill.

Our attitude can improve our skills so we need to change our attitudes and become more focused and driven.

Our minds find it impossible to store all the information it receives in a day and so it deletes the unnecessary detail.  So you need to change your attitude to your business or your life.  You need to set goals, concentrate on knowing what you want to achieve and work towards achieving your goals.

But your goals need to be SMART goals:

Specific – know exactly what you want
Measurable – be able to follow the progress
Achievable – be within your capabilities
Realistic – be possible to do
Time – you must make the time to do it

You need to know exactly what your goals are, be able to set a plan and follow it, be achievable for you (e.g. don’t attempt to be a brain surgeon if you can’t stand the sight of blood), be possible to do (e.g. don’t try and think you can fly) and you must be prepared to put in the time to achieve your goals, or have the time to do it.


Seeing Things As They Are

Some days start off great and just get better while others start off bad and get worse.

Why is this?

It all depends on your attitude and what you’re focusing on.  If you’re in a bad mood then everything will seem bad because you’re focusing on it.

It’s just the same with your goals.  If you focus on missing them, then you will.

You see, our brain never hears the word ‘wont’ or ‘don’t’.  That’s why children always do what you tell them not to.  They never hear the word ‘don’t’.

So if you focus on not missing your goal by thinking ‘I won’t fail’, then you will.  Instead, tell yourself, ‘I will succeed’.


Forget Failure

Children learn faster than adults because they have no fear of ridicule or failure.

Children always look on the bright side:

Kids are curious - Adults are cynical
Kids love puddles - Adults hate rain


Babies learn to walk by setting a goal and working towards it.  When they fall down they adopt a different strategy, such as holding onto the furniture, and then they keep going and learning.  We should take a leaf out of a baby’s book, so to speak.

Never say ‘I can’t do this.’  Just take notice of what’s not working and change strategies.  This will move you closer to your goal.

What else stops you from achieving our goals?


Beliefs

Your beliefs can hinder you or help you, but they can only help you if you understand that they are only beliefs.

Events don’t shape your life.  It’s your interpretation of these events that shapes your life.

Your beliefs and certainties have the power to expand or destroy your true potential.

Beliefs are limiting, so it’s important to understand that they are only beliefs and not reality.

The past does not equal the future.  Just because you haven’t achieved something in the past doesn’t mean you can’t achieve it in the future.

You need to question your beliefs and where they come from.
Remember, you can change – but not if you believe you can’t.

Focus on what your limiting beliefs have stopped you from achieving. Change whatever is limiting you.

If you believe you’ll win, then you will.


Remember that you don’t have to be 100% successful in everything you do to be successful.  Every step you take to achieve your goal is a success.  And if something goes wrong, just chalk it up to experience – we learn from our experiences.


Things You Can Do Right Now

Always ask yourself:

What did I do well today?
What did I learn today?
What am I going to do differently tomorrow?

Never avoid failure.
Stride for success.
Keep trying different strategies.

We slump when depressed and sit tall when we feel successful.  Adopting these postures can affect our attitude and state of mind.

How you feel on the inside can affect how you look on the outside and this can influence people around you.  What you focus your mind on affects your body language.  Therefore you can change your state of mind by changing your posture.  So when you feel depressed, adopt the upright posture of a successful person.

People and circumstances can also affect your state of mind, but this can be controlled.  Instead of giving up letting external factors control your state of mind, adopt a positive attitude, stand tall and refuse to be influenced by negative things around you.

This is easier said than done because our responses are learned and our unconscious mind cannot always distinguish what is and isn’t real.


For instance; if you raise your hand to your mouth and imagine you’re sucking a lemon, you’ll wince.  The lemon may be imaginary, but your mind has a conditioned response which makes you wince.

Therefore, never forget:

If you think you can’t achieve something, then you wont.

                If you think you can achieve something, then nothing will stand in your way.